Presidents: William Howard Taft

President Roosevelt felt that Taft was his logical successor when he decided not to run for re-election in 1908. Taft became the Republication Convention nominee and won the election.

William Howard Taft was sworn in as president on March 4, 1909.

“Taft did not enjoy the easy relationship with the press that Roosevelt had, choosing not to offer himself for interviews or photo opportunities as often as his predecessor had. His administration marked a change in style from the charismatic leadership of Roosevelt to Taft’s quieter passion for the rule of law.”

During his time in office, Taft made six appointments to the Supreme Court, more than any president except George Washington and Franklin D. Roosevelt. This was a position he had long coveted and longed to fill and must not have been easy for him as he filled these positions.

He was the first President to introduce the automobile in official Washington DC life.

In 1912, Taft was elected as nominee for re-election by the Republican convention. However, his predecessor and mentor, Theodore Roosevelt, was unhappy with many of his policies and decided to run again under the Bull Moose party. This split much of the Republican votes and the election was won by the Democratic nominee, Governor Woodrow Wilson.

William Howard Taft

Taft left office on March 4, 1913. He became a Professor of Law at Yale Law School. He also made money by giving speeches.

He was president of the Lincoln Memorial Commission and oversaw the construction of the memorial, which was dedicated in late May 1922.

In 1913, he served as president of the American Bar Association.

He also served on the League to Enforce Peace to try and prevent war {World War I}.

Upon the death of Chief Justice White, President Harding nominated William Howard Taft on June 30, 1921. He was confirmed the same day and sworn in on July 11th of that year.

Taft is remembered as our heaviest president, but when he became Chief Justice he began to walk three miles a day. He is regarded as one of the greatest of the chief justices.

His health began to slowly decline and he died on March 8, 1930 at his home in Washington. He became the first president and first member of the Supreme Court to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

William Taft Timeline: Presidential Timeline of Important Events
1909 His inauguration as 27th President of the United States
1909 Taft’s Dollar Diplomacy (1909 – 1913) calling for the use of diplomatic and military action to further foreign business interests 1909 His administration continued the Antitrust Policy initiated by Theodore Roosevelt that was designed to keep markets open and competitive.
1909 March 25: The Crazy Snake Rebellion between the Creek Indians and settlers in Oklahoma
1909 June: The Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act lowered tariffs on certain goods entering the US 1909 November: The Ballinger-Pinchot scandal in which Secretary of the Interior Richard Ballinger is accused of conspiring to defraud the public domain in the Alaskan coal fields and that the Taft administration was complicit in his actions
1910 June: The Postal Savings Depository Act of 1910 established the Postal Savings System
1910 Angel Island Immigration Station opened in the San Francisco Bay, California 1910 The Mexican Revolution (1910-1920) started with an uprising led by Francisco Madero against Porfirio Díaz
1911 The Battle of Kelley Creek in Nevada. A small group of Bannock and Shoshone killed four men in an incident known as the Last Massacre
1911 The President began to back away from his efforts to tame the trusts. 1912 New Mexico is admitted as the forty-seventh state on January 6, 1912
1912 The Sinking of the Titanic off the coast of Newfoundland on April 14, 1912
1913 The Sixteenth Amendment Ratified authorizing Congress to collect income taxes 1913 The 17th Amendment Ratified stating that people will elect Senators. Before this, Senators were elected by state legislatures.
1913 His presidency and term in office ends. The next US President was Woodrow Wilson
Presidential Timeline of important Events

1886 William Taft was married to Helen Herron Tafton June 19, 1886. They had 3 Children

1887-90 Judge in Ohio Superior Court, 1887-90

1890-92 U.S. Solicitor General, 1890-92

1892-1900 U.S. Circuit Court Judge, 1892-1900

1901-04 Governor of the Philippines, 1901-04

1904-08 Secretary of War, 1904-08 (under T. Roosevelt)

1909 1909 William Taft became the President of the United States of America
Taft’s Dollar Diplomacy which called for the use of diplomatic and military action to further business interests overseas. Antitrust Policy

1913 Sixteenth Amendment Ratified (1913)

1913 1913 The Presidency of William Taftended

1917 US enters World War I

1919 Treaty of Versailles

1921-30 Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, 1921-30

1924 Indian Reorganization Act

1927 Indian Reorganization Act
Charles Lindbergh makes first trans-Atlantic flightThe Jazz Singer starring Al Jolson is the first “talkie” to be released

1929 Great Depression begins

1930 William Taft died of a heart attack on March 8, 1930 in Washington D.C. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.